Cohtintjous eeed device fob box-topping machines



C. F. SCHUTTE.

commuous FEED DEVICE ron BOX TOPPING MACHINES.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 7, l9l5- 1,323,496, Y Patented Dec. ,1919.

INVENTOR Char/e5 FSZ/wffe CHARLES E. scnur'rn, or UTICA, new YORK.

CONTINUOUS FEED DEVICE BOX-TOPPING MACHINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 2, 1919.

Application filed October 7, 1915. Serial No. 54,624.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CiIARLns F. SoHUT'rn, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Utica, in the county of Oneida and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Continuous Feed Devices for Box Topping Machines, of which the following is a. specification.

My invention relates to a device for feeding boxes to a box-topping machine, that is,

a machine adapted to automatically attachthe finishing surfaces to cardboard boxes The principal object of my invention is the production of a feed device for a machine of the character above mentioned whichdevice shall be simple in construction, of low cost and of ease tomanufacture and of few parts. y

A further object of my invention is the production of a feed device of the character above described and which shall also have a continuous motion so that the output of the machine to which it is applied shall be materially increased over the machines now in use. The automatic box-topping machines with which I am now familiar all employ a form carrier or feed device havmg. a reclprocating action such for instance as that shown and described in the patent to John F. OBrien and George E; Bowdle, No. 1,106,727, dated August 11th, 1914. The re ciprocating action of the form carrier shown in that patent is sometimes objectionable, however, for the reason that it is impossible to quickly feed the boxes to the machine and the return stroke of the carrier is nothing but lost motion. By the use of my device this lost motion is entirely obviated, the boxes can be fed to the machine expeditiously and as a consequence the output of the machine is greatly increased.

r In the accompanying drawings and subjoined description I have shown and described my invention as applied to a boxtopping machine although I have purposely omitted showing and describing various parts of that machine such, for instance, as the paper-controlling mechanism and papercutting mechanismas these parts are old in the art and well understood and form no part of my invention and anydescription thereof would be superfluous and unnecese 'sary. The preferable type of box-topping machine to which I propose to apply my in vcntion is that shown in the OBrien and Bowdle patent above referred to and I preferably use a cutting mechanism on that machine such as is shown and described in my Patent No. 1,145,039 and dated July 6th, 1915.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear from the following description, the invention consisting in the novel features and parts and combinations of the same hereinafter more particularly described and then specified in the claims.

A practical embodiment of the invention is represented in the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification in which similar characters of reference represent corresponding parts in both the views.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 illustrates a side elevation of the frame of a box-topping machine (partly broken away) and showing my invention as applied thereto.

Fig. 2 is an end view of the same.

Referring to the drawings:

'1 indicates the side plates or frames of a box-topping machine in which the main shaft 2 is journaled, said shaft being provided at an end thereof with adrive pulley 3, the other end of the shaft having keyed thereto the sprocket 4. Shaft 5 is journal ed in suitable bearings comprising a portion of the side plates or frames 1 and the caps 5 fastened to the side plates in any conrcnient manner, as, for instance, by the screw bolts 5 as shown. The form of bearing used for the shaft 5 easily permits of the removal ofthe shaft if found desirable for any reason by simply unscrewing the screwbolts 5? and removing the caps 5. Shaft 5 carries fast pulley 6 and sprocket 7 is keyed to the end of the shaft.

8 indicates recesses cut in the side frames of the machine for receiving the adjustable removable bearings 9 having. cap portions 10 secured thereto by the screw bolts 11. The bearings 9 are also provided with flanges 12 which contact with the side plates 1 and prevent lateral displacement of the bearings. 13 indicates adjustable screws whose heads rest against the rear walls of the recesses 8 and whose shanks are screwed into the. body of the bearings 9. As is ob-.

vious the normal position of the bearings 9 in a horizontal direction can be regulated by an adjustment of the screws 13.

A shaft 14 is journaled in the adjustable removable bearings 9 and carries the fast pulley 15. A sprocket 16 is also keyed to the endof shaft 1 1. An endless chain 17 engages preferably the lower side of sprocket 1 and passes over sprockets Tand 16.

The form blocks or box supports which carry the boxes to which the finishing surfaces are to be applied consist of a body portion 18 preferably integrally united with the top portion 19, and the base 20 which is secured to the body portion by the screws 20. The bases :20 of the form blocks are provided with inclined sides 21 conforming in shape to the-inclined shoulders 22 of the side frames 1 and the inclined shoulders extend preferably only for a certain distance from the center of the machine toward the ends thereof. As shown in Fig 1, the inclined shoulders extend from the point marked A to the point marked B. The bases 20 are secured. to an endless belt or carrier 23, preferably made of leather or other suitable material, by the screws 2%. The endless belt or carrier 23 travels around the machine and over the pulleys 6 and 15. Ol viously, any slackness or tautness in the endless belt 23 or in the chain 17 can be compensated for by a simple adjustment of the screws 13 thereby permitting a change in the horizontal position of the bearings 9. fit the forward end of each of the bases 20 of the form blocks a standard is Socured to which is pivoted an arm carrying a roller 27, the arm being partially controlled by spring 28. The roller *2 corresponds to the roller marked 12 in the OBrien and Bowdle patent and is adapted to 7 rock the cams of the paper controlling mechanism when the form blocks pass under that mechanism. The paper controlling mechanism is not shown but if desired it could be similar in construction to that shown and described in the OBrien and Bowdle patent above referred to. At the rear end of each of the bases 20 of the form blocks is located a roller 29 which is similarly mounted on a suitable standard and is similar in construction to the rollers 27. The rollers 29 correspond to the roller markec 7-1 in the OBrien and Bowdle patent as well as the roller 60 of my prior Patent Nelda-5,039 and are adapted to rock the cams of the paper cutting mechanism (not shown).

The operation of the device is as follows:

Main shaft 2 is driven by pulley 3 and by means of the chain 17 and the sprockets 7, 4 and 16, the shafts 5 and 14- are caused to rotate. The endless belt or carrier 23,v which passes over the pulleys 6 and 15, is then caused to travel around the machine, as is obvious, as the pulleys 6 and 15 are carried respectively by shafts 5 and 1 1 as has heretofore been explained. Assuming that the carrier 23 travels in a counter-clockwise di rection, the boxes are manually applied to the form blocks whenthey reach a position directly over or almost over the pulley 15.

After the form blocks have assumed a perfectly horizontal position, the inclined sides 21 of the bases 20 thereof pass under-the inclined shoulders 22 of the side frames 1 which form guides for the bases 20 so that they will be kept in ahorizontal position when they pass beneath the box topping' mechanisnrand when the finishing surfaces are applied to the boxes. After the form blocks have passed from beneath the boxtopping mechanism the finished boxes are removed therefrom. V I

Although I do not limit my invention to any actual number of formyblocks, I find in practice thatfour of them' may be advantageously used as is illustrated in Fig. 1. It is obvious that when four form blocks are used instead of one as in the OBrien'and Bowdle patent, and the movement of the 7 carrier 1s a contmuous onem one direction instead of a reciprocating one, the output of the machine will be appreciably in creased.

It will be understood that the invention is not limited to the exact details of construction and the arrangement of parts auxiliary shafts, a sprocket secured to eachof said shafts, an endless chain engaging said sprockets, a mam shaft 3ournaled in said side frames intermediate said auxiliary shafts and substantially equidistant therefrom, a sprocket keyed. to said main shaft 7 and engaging said endless chain for driving the same, an endless carrier frictionally Il'- gaging said pulleys and adapted'to travel "thereover, and around the machine and a plurality of box supports or form blocks extend ng outwardly from the endless carrier and fastened thereto at spaced intervals and adapted to support and carry the boxes thereon.

*2. In a box topping machine provided with side frames, longitudinally extending shoulders united with said side frames and terminating at points remote from the ends thereof, bearings -mounted in said side frames at either end thereof, auxiliary shafts journaled in said bearings, the bearings for one of said auxiliary shafts being adjustable whereby the horizontal position of said (shaft may;bevaried, a sprocket secured to each-of said auxiliary-shafts, an

endless chain engaging said sprockets,

main shaft journaled in said side frames intermediate sald auxiliary shafts and sub stautially equid stant therefrom, a sprocket secured to said main shaft and engaging said endless chain for driving the same, a pulley carried by each of said auxiliary shafts, an endless carrier frictionally engaging said pulleys and adapted to travel thereover and around the machine and a plurality of box supports or form blocks extending outwardly from the endless carrier and fastened thereto at spaced intervals and adapted to support and carry boxes thereon, said box supports or form blocks &

being adapted to pass beneath the said inclined shoulders which fol-n1 a guideway therefor.

Signed at Utica, in the county of Oneida 15 and State of New York, this 2 day of Oct. A. D. 1915.

CHARLES F. SOHUTTE.

Witnesses BENJ. J. THOMAS, F. D. BANNIGAN, 

